Tornado Damage and Fire History in the Cross Timbers of the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve, Oklahoma

Abstract

The Cross Timbers are a mosaic of savanna, grasslands, and upland forests dominated by Quercus marilandica and Q. stellata, stretching from southeastern Kansas through Oklahoma and into central Texas. Windstorm and fire are natural disturbances impacting the Cross Timbers. However, we know little about disturbances effect in the Cross Timbers. We examined how severe tornado in 2003 affected the two dominant trees species in Cross Timbers. We also reconstructed fire chronology using tree disks. The tornado damaged a greater proportion of Q. marilandica than Q. stellata. Tree diameter influenced the damage and mortality pattern in Q. stellata but not in Q. marilandica. The intra- and inter-specific differences in windstorm susceptibility may allow coexistence of the two species and are potentially important in the dynamics of the Cross Timbers. Fire appeared very frequently in the area between 1947 and 1992. Most of them occurred in the dormant or early spring season.